All summer long, MSG Varsity brings you a recap of the past year in Long Island’s top high school sports. We’ll publish a new “Year in Review” article every Thursday through August 13. Next up, we look back at the year that was in Long Island baseball.

The St. Thomas Aquinas College rising sophomore spent the summer playing for the North Fork Ospreys of the Hamptons Collegiate Baseball League, which has some of the country's top collegiate talent. As of Wednesday, he was 5-2 with a 1.25 ERA in 43.0 innings and leads the league with 50 strikeouts.

After Matz's stellar all-around performance in the Mets' 7-2 win over the Reds -- he allowed two earned runs, five hits and three walks while striking out six in 7 2/3 innings, and went 3-for-3 with four RBIs -- many were ready to crown the Stony Brook native the new king of New York, or at least the new king of Long Island. Yet you still would probably walk unknowingly past him down the sidewalk, said Lou Petrucci, Matz's high school baseball coach at Ward Melville.

Hauppauge lefthander Nick Fanti, selected in the 31st round of Major League Baseball's amateur draft in early June, has agreed to terms with the Phillies on a minor-league contract. He called it "a dream come true.''

Smithtown Christian defeated Westfield, 8-4, on June 13 for its second straight state title. Before that game, as every other time they took the field this season and last, the Knights chanted, "One, two, three, family!''

The town understood the significance of what transpired several hours earlier, about 250 miles northwest in Binghamton. The Tuckers of Class B had beaten Livonia, 4-1, for their first state championship.

MSG Varsity 10 Best celebrates the incredible plays, moments and accomplishments delivered by high school student athletes from around the Tri-State. Find out who made our countdown, and can be called one of MSG Varsity 10 Best!

MSG Varsity 10 Best celebrates the incredible plays, moments and accomplishments delivered by high school student athletes from around the Tri-State. Find out who made our countdown, and can be called one of MSG Varsity 10 Best!

No other Long Islander earned a spot in both the Grand Slam Challenge and Empire Challenge. The East Meadow senior, who will play baseball at LIU Post, went 1-for-2 with a single and stolen base Monday in Nassau's 3-1 win over Suffolk in the Grand Slam Challenge. Tuesday night he lined up at cornerback for the Long Island all-stars against New York City in the Empire Challenge at Hofstra University.

The 28-person class, which represents 23 high schools and includes athletes, coaches, administrators, contributors and officials, will officially be inducted at a ceremony at the Crest Hollow County Club on Sept. 30.

Bianco's two-run single in the bottom of the sixth inning broke a 1-1 tie and sent the Nassau All-Stars to a 3-1 win over the Suffolk All-Stars in the 11th Grand Slam Challenge before 550 fans at Farmingdale State College.

Special may be an understatement as Misiaszek went 5-1 as a senior this season with 93 strikeouts and five walks in 441/3 innings. He finished the regular season with an 0.67 ERA and 0.60 WHIP, and won the Diamond Award as the best pitcher in Nassau County Wednesday night at the Nassau baseball dinner at the Uniondale Marriott. He was a finalist for the award last season.

Papa, an All-Long Island pitcher, was trying to get out Calandra, a Ryan T. Caulfield winner as the top catcher in Nassau. Calandra remembers thinking "his knuckle drop is one of the filthiest pitches I've ever seen in my life. It's unbelievable how he throws it for strikes."

Schaghticoke Hoosic Valley turned two 10th-inning errors by Southold into two runs in its 2-0 win in a Class C semifinal at Binghamton University yesterday. Senior Alex Poliwoda, who went 9 1/3 innings and allowed two unearned runs, seven hits and two walks with one strikeout, was charged with the loss. But that doesn't speak to his performance.

Jacob Stuckelman doubled down the leftfield line in the bottom of the 10th inning as New Castle Byram Hills ended Division's season with a 4-3 walk-off victory in the Class A state baseball semifinals Saturday.

Jon Dwyer was doing backflips at the end of Mattituck's run to the state Class B baseball championship. The second baseman was celebrating with the rest of the Tuckers after they beat Livonia, 4-1, to capture the title at Broome Community College Saturday.

The Thunderbirds squandered a two-run fifth-inning lead and fell to Mamaroneck, 4-2, Saturday in the state Class AA semifinal round at Union-Endicott High School. Mamaroneck scored two unearned runs in each of the fifth and seventh innings to pull out the win.

Hosts Kevin Devaney Jr. and Gregg Sarra bring the heat on Long Island baseball with highlights and discussion of top teams and players and the unveiling of our latest Tri-State Baseball Top 20 rankings.

Presented by the Butch Dellecave Foundation in conjunction with the Economic Counsel of Suffolk, Inc., and Newsday, the awards come with $1,000 scholarships. They recognize the top male and female student-athlete for outstanding achievement in three areas -- athletic prowess, academics and community service.

It was the fourth Long Island title for Connetquot, which won it in 1986, 1989 and 1995, and the third time Connetquot beat MacArthur in the L.I. title game. The T-Birds (24-4) will face Mamaroneck in a state semifinal at 10 a.m. Saturday in Binghamton.

Hosts Kevin Devaney Jr. and Gregg Sarra bring the heat on Long Island baseball with highlights and discussion of top teams and players and the unveiling of our latest Tri-State Baseball Top 20 rankings.

Division pitcher James Varela was dominant Wednesday in leading his team to a 10-1 victory over North Shore in Game 2 for the Nassau Class A baseball title at Farmingdale State. Varela threw a five-hitter with eight strikeouts for the Blue Dragons.

The two-time defending state champions will meet Division (25-4) for the Long Island Class A championship/Southeast state regional at New York Institute of Technology in Old Westbury on Saturday at noon.

Playing it safe didn't work for Oceanside because junior Jared Wolfe hit a two-run single for No. 2 MacArthur (20-6). That made four runs on three hits and three errors to put the Generals ahead 4-2 in the top of the second, and they held on for a 4-3 victory Wednesday to win the Nassau AA crown at Farmingdale State.

Division, the No. 1 seed and defending county champion, defeated No. 3 seed North Shore, 14-3, in Game 1 of the best-of-three Nassau Class A finals at Farmingdale State College. Game 2 will be Monday at 7 p.m. at Farmingdale State.

Making his third appearance in four days, the Connetquot ace fired a six-hitter with five strikeouts in top-seeded Connetquot's 5-1 win over second-seeded Ward Melville in Game 1 of the best-of-three Suffolk Class AA baseball finals Saturday in Bohemia. Game 2 is at Ward Melville at 4 p.m. Monday.

Second-seeded MacArthur defeated fifth-seeded Oceanside, 7-4, in Game 1 of the best-of-three Nassau Class AA finals. MacArthur is one win from its first county title since 1994. Game 2 is Monday at 4 p.m. at Farmingdale State.

Shoreham-Wading River defeated Bayport-Blue Point, 4-0, in a 73-minute Game 2 of a best-of-three Suffolk Class A final to force Game 3 Monday at Bayport-Blue Point High School at 4 p.m. BBP won Game 1, 8-1.

Third-seeded North Shore beat seventh-seeded Plainedge, 5-3, on Thursday in a winner-take-all Game 3 to advance to the championship round. The Vikings will play top-seeded Division at noon on Saturday at Farmingdale State in a best-of-three rematch of last season's final.

Hosts Kevin Devaney Jr. and Gregg Sarra bring the heat on Long Island baseball with highlights and discussion of top teams and players and the unveiling of our latest Tri-State Baseball Top 20 rankings.

Keller went 3-for-4 with two doubles and an RBI single on Tuesday as fifth-seeded Shoreham-Wading River defeated top-seeded Glenn, 5-1, in the third and deciding game of their Suffolk Class A baseball semifinal series.

He hammered a 1-and-0 inside fastball over the leftfield fence to give the third-seeded Vikings a 3-2 win over No. 7 Plainedge in Game 1 of their best-of-three Nassau Class A semifinal series. Game 2 will be played at 4:30 p.m. Tuesday at Plainedge.

Batting with two outs and the bases loaded in a tie game that had reached the bottom of the eighth, the freshman battled back from a 1-and-2 count and walked to force in the winning run in fifth-seeded Oceanside's 3-2 win over sixth-seeded Syosset in Game 1 of their Nassau Class AA semifinal series Monday in Oceanside.

The senior right-hander tossed a complete-game, three-hit shutout to lead Chaminade to a 10-0 win over St. Dominic’s. The Flyers captured their 17th NSCHSAA title and first since 2011, sweeping the best-of-three series.

The Flyers (18-3) moved within a win of the CHSAA championship and will meet St. Dominic (13-8) in Game 2 at 10 a.m. Monday at New York Tech. If the Bayhawks win, Game 3 will be played immediately thereafter.

He drilled a 2-and-0 fastball into centerfield for an RBI single that drove in Troy Davern and gave the host Patriots a 1-0 win over East Islip in the first game of their best-of-three Suffolk Class AA semifinal series.

Weeks drove in pinch-runner Joe Donnelly with a line-drive single to give the No. 3 Phantoms a 6-5 walk-off victory Saturday over No. 2 Comsewogue in nine innings of Game 2 in the best-of-three Suffolk Class A semifinals. The series is now a game apiece.

The Half Hollow Hills West varsity baseball player has accomplished something even better than the toughest feat on the diamond. He managed perfect scores on both his SAT and ACT college admission tests. How's that for retiring the side in order?

Morse broke the game open when he launched a 1-and-0 fastball to straightaway centerfield for a 400-foot grand slam, capping a five-run inning and propelling top-seeded Connetquot to an 11-3 win over 10th-seeded Hills East on Thursday in a Suffolk Class AA quarterfinal in Bohemia.

The Red Devils' first three hitters in the lineup -- Ryan McGrane, Anthony Misciagna and Jimmy Mendyk -- along with No. 6 hitter Nolan Matthews, reached base in 13 of 20 plate appearances, and combined for seven runs and six RBIs.

Flynn, who bats righthanded, has been walked a school-record 57 times in his career. Eleven of the 23 this season were intentional. He has been on base 54 times in 79 plate appearances for an on-base percentage is .684.

Hosts Kevin Devaney Jr. and Gregg Sarra bring the heat on Long Island baseball with highlights and discussion of top teams and players and the unveiling of our latest Tri-State Baseball Top 20 rankings.

Reiss Knehr pitched effectively for St. Dominic, especially in clutch situations Monday. But the most important strike in the Bayhawks' 3-2 victory over St. John the Baptist may have been thrown by centerfielder John LaRocca.

But they are here, and they brought their bats with them. Those sticks came alive early and often for 17th-seeded Bay Shore in its 14-9 victory over 18th-seeded Eastport-South Manor. Bay Shore (11-10) will face sixth-seeded East Islip in the Class AA first round at 10 a.m. Saturday.

Hosts Kevin Devaney Jr. and Gregg Sarra bring the heat on Long Island baseball with highlights and discussion of top teams and players and the unveiling of our latest Tri-State Baseball Top 20 rankings.

He threw six scoreless innings, striking out eight and scattering seven hits with a walk as the Generals beat Valley Stream Central, 7-0, to lock up the Conference AA-3 title Tuesday at Firemen's Memorial Field.

Fanti wasn't going to be denied. The lefthander fired a three-hit shutout, his fifth of the season, struck out seven, walked two and hit one batter in a 5-0 win over host West Babylon in a Suffolk League V baseball game.

Misiaszek, a senior lefthander who received a scholarship to Northeastern, struck out 11 in six scoreless innings, earned his fifth victory in six decisions and lowered his ERA to 0.61 as the Cyclones improved to 12-4. Division fell to 14-2. The three-game series resumes on Tuesday, but both teams will get high seeds for the county playoffs, which begin Saturday.

Hosts Kevin Devaney Jr. and Gregg Sarra bring the heat on Long Island baseball with highlights and discussion of top teams and players and the unveiling of our latest Tri-State Baseball Top 20 rankings.

With his team down by two in the seventh, Olsson hit a walk-off, three-run home run to left-centerfield that gave host BBP a 3-2 win over Glenn in Suffolk League VII and sent the crowd into pandemonium.

With one out and runners on second and third, Parker stepped in the box and laced an RBI single to give Hills West a one-run lead on its way to a 3-1 win over East Islip in Dix Hills. Ryan Barone had a two-out, run-scoring single to make it 2-0 and Matt Feinstein added a solo home run in the sixth for the Colts (12-3, 10-3).

Enea, who showed a little heat himself with nine strikeouts, outdueled Misiaszek, 3-2, on Monday in a Nassau A-II baseball game at Barasch Field in Rockville Centre. Tim Curtis' bad-hop single to center in the sixth-inning drove in the winning run for the Indians (8-5). The Cyclones fell to 9-3.

James Varela (5-0, 0.91 ERA) continued his fantastic senior season with a three-hitter, striking out 12. He took a no-hitter into the fifth inning before Plainedge's Rich Whalen grounded a single into leftfield.

Before the game, DeMeo told his grandfather, Angelo DeMeo, he'd be pitching with a purpose: to make him proud. Angelo is a World War II veteran who served in Germany and always attends "Troops Day" at Sayville High School.

Hosts Kevin Devaney Jr. and Gregg Sarra bring the heat on Long Island baseball with highlights and discussion of top teams and players and the unveiling of our latest Tri-State Baseball Top 20 rankings.

See everything that's happening on MSG Varsity in 3 minutes with news, highlights, interviews and social media updates. Watch MSGV 360 each day to see what we're talking about and who we're covering. Hosted by Amanda Pugliese.

But in the seventh, the host Red Devils turned a knock-knock, knock-knock joke into a knockout punch line delivering three two-out hits off reliever Sal Miranda, the last a fly-ball double off the right-centerfield fence by Nolan Matthews to stun the Cyclones, 4-3, Monday in a marquee Nassau A-II matchup.

Hosts Kevin Devaney Jr. and Gregg Sarra bring the heat on Long Island baseball with highlights and discussion of top teams and players and the unveiling of our latest Tri-State Baseball Top 20 rankings.

See everything that's happening on MSG Varsity in 3 minutes with news, highlights, interviews and social media updates. Watch MSGV 360 each day to see what we're talking about and who we're covering. Hosted by Amanda Pugliese.

Kavanagh got Andrew Ditzel to line into a double play and Kyle McLernon to hit a hard grounder to short to end it as the AA-II Jets improved to 7-0 while the AA-I Chiefs fell to 4-3. Kavanagh struck out eight and allowed only five hits.

Reliever Will DeLuca reacted the best way he knew how: with five innings of one-run ball to secure a 2-1 win for Valley Stream Central (4-2) Thursday at Fireman's Field. Mike Ciullo's inside-the-park home run broke a 1-1 tie in the sixth.

Hosts Kevin Devaney Jr. and Gregg Sarra bring the heat on Long Island baseball with highlights and discussion of top teams and players and the unveiling of our latest Tri-State Baseball Top 20 rankings.

Hosts Kevin Devaney Jr. and Gregg Sarra bring the heat on Long Island baseball with highlights and discussion of top teams and players and the unveiling of our latest Tri-State Baseball Top 20 rankings.

Someone forgot to tell the Newfield offense this was a pitchers' duel. The Wolverines slammed 11 hits and pounded previously undefeated Hills West, 10-5, in a Suffolk League IV baseball game in Dix Hills.

Contributions to win baseball games can come in many ways. On Monday it was the defense of Hicksville centerfielder Greg Power and his perfectly executed squeeze bunt that keyed the Comets' 2-1 victory over Syosset in a Nassau Conference AA-I game.

South Side's Andrew Misiaszek was the headliner, tossing a no-hitter with 18 strikeouts and no walks in a 3-0 victory over Hewlett in Conference A-II Monday. The only two Hewlett baserunners reached on errors.

Host Kevin Devaney Jr. and MSG Varsity experts get you caught up on Long Island baseball with highlights and discussion of top teams and players and reveal our latest Tri-State Baseball Top 20 rankings.

He scattered five hits, struck out three, walked one and hit one in six innings as Half Hollow Hills West beat top-ranked West Islip, 7-2, at Baseball Heaven in Yaphank, handing Kory the first loss of his high school career.

Of course the gnome is nice if you believe in good luck charms. But Division wins championships with pitchers such as righthanded seniors Anthony Papa and James Varella. Both are headed to LIU Post and combined for 15 wins in last year's county championship run.